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Table of contents Table of contents... 1 1. Introduction... 3 Features... 4 Block Diagram... 6 2. Pinouts... 7 3. Absolute Maximum Ratings... 9 4. General Recommended Operating Conditions... 10 5. RF Characteristics... 12 6. Electrical Characteristics... 15 7. Physical Characteristics and Drawings... 16 2 of 17
1. Introduction GAUSS High Power UHF Radio (Figure 1) is a low mass and high efficiency 5W radio designed for small satellites. The High Power UHF Radio integrates both a low power UHF transceiver and a TNC, thus simplifying the satellite design while providing more than 45% efficiency with a 3.3V digital power supply and 7V to 12V amplifier power supply. Figure 1 GAUSS High Power UHF Radio The uplink and downlink are totally independent, meaning that they can be configured with different frequencies, modulations and protocols via software, changing dynamically also the output power. Two radios can be stacked on the same PC/104 board, allowing them to operate at redundancy mode (Figure 3). It comes with an adapter board for testing (see Figure 2) and a computer software interface. It is fully compatible with the GAUSS Mini Ground Dongle. A special bundle includes both the Radio and the Mini Ground Dongle, for a quick system deployment. Figure 2 GAUSS Radio Adapter Board Figure 3 GAUSS Radio PC/104 Dual Radio 3 of 17
Features Figure 4 GAUSS High Power Radio UHF (SMA connector installed) The primary features of the High Power UHF Radio are: Up to 37dBm of output power dynamically configurable by software (and dependent on power amplifier supply voltage); 40% to 50% efficiency; Digital section powered by a 3.3V bus and RF amplifier section from 7V to 12V; UHF frequency band for TT&C; AX.25 protocol supported; FEC Viterbi k4 and Viterbi k7 & RS 1 supported; Integrated TNC, radio can be interfaced using KISS; Transparent mode supported (radio behaves like the analog fronted and the user implements its own protocols); Data-rate: 300bps to 100kbps; Sensitivity: -122dBm @1.2kbps, -119dBm @9.6kbps, -109dBm @50kbps; Configurable autonomous beacon; GPIOs available that can be commanded from ground; Configurable output power and frequencies in orbit; Firmware can be updated while in orbit; I2C 1, UART, SPI 1 and CAN Bus 1 interface support; 1 Feature currently not supported; it will be available in future firmware upgrades or upon user request. 4 of 17
FSK/MSK/GFSK/GMSK modulations; Speeds up to 250kbps (with 4GFSK) 1 ; Off the shelf industrial grade / automotive components; Operating temperature range -40 C to +85 C; Kits for PC/104 CubeSat form factor compatibility; Full Compatibility with GAUSS USB Mini Ground Dongle; Radio Self protects itself when temperatures are beyond specification; SMA and MMCX connectors available. 5 of 17
Block Diagram SMA/MMCX Connector J1 10-pin Header P2 Reserved P1M Power & Data ARM Microcontroller Narrowband Transceiver Power Amplification RF Signal Figure 5 GAUSS High Power UHF Radio General Overview 6 of 17
2. Pinouts Figure 6 shows the location of each connector. Pinout information for these connectors can be found in Table 1. J1 P2 2 1 P1M Figure 6 GAUSS High Power UHF Radio Available ports Power to the High Power UHF Radio is provided separately to the TNC/Transceiver and to the Power Amplifier, thus achieving maximum performance (see 4 General Recommended Operating Conditions for more information). The High Power UHF Radio also provides the following communication interfaces: I2C 1, SPI 1, UART and CAN Bus 1 on P2 see Table 1. Connector P2 male header can be plugged either from the top or the bottom see Figure 4, Figure 17, Figure 18 and Figure 19 for detailed information. The RF Connector J1 can be of type SMA or MMCX, according to Option Sheet. 7 of 17
Connector Connector Type Pin Function J1 2 SMA Jack 3 / MMCX Jack - RF Signal P1M 5x2 Header - Reserved P2 10x2 Header Model Harwin M503151042 1 Power Amp Power Supply V PA 2 Ground 3 Power Amp Power Supply V PA 4 Ground 5 Power Amp Power Supply V PA 6 Ground 7 SPI SOMI 8 SPI SIMO 9 SPI SCLK 10 SPI CS 11 I 2 C SDA 12 UART Rx 13 I 2 C SCL 14 UART Tx 15 Reset 16 CAN High 17 Interrupt 18 CAN Low 19 Power Supply V DD 20 Ground Table 1 GAUSS High Power UHF Radio available ports pinout 2 MMCX J1 Connector is available upon request (Option Sheet Document). 3 Standard-polarity SMA Female Connector (jack): female body (outside threads) and female receptacle (sleeve). 8 of 17
3. Absolute Maximum Ratings Stresses beyond those listed under "absolute maximum ratings" may cause permanent damage to the device. These are stress ratings only, and functional operation of the device at these or any other conditions beyond those indicated under "recommended operating conditions" is not implied. Exposure to absolute-maximum-rated conditions for extended periods may affect device reliability. TA = 25 C, unless otherwise noted. Parameter 4 Min Max Unit Power Supply V DD (on P2 connector) -0.3 +3.9 V Power Amp Power Supply V PA (on P2 connector) +13.2 V Communication (except CAN Bus), Reset and Interrupt Pins Voltage Range (on P2 connector) -0.3 +4 V Communication (except CAN Bus), Reset and Interrupt Pins Maximum 64 ma Current(on P2 connector) CAN Bus Voltage Range (on P2 connector) (CAN_H - CAN_L) -7 +25 V RF input level (on J1 connector) +10 dbm Storage temperature range -40 +85 C Table 2 GAUSS High Power UHF Radio Absolute Maximum Ratings 4 Voltages refer to GND 9 of 17
4. General Recommended Operating Conditions TA = 25 C, unless otherwise noted. Parameter 4 Min Typ Max Unit Power Supply V DD (on P2 connector) +3.0 +3.3 +3.6 V Power Amp Power Supply V PA (on P2 connector) 5 +7 +3.5 +12 V Input Reset and Interrupt High-level +0.65*V DD +3.3 Voltage Low-level 0 +0.65*V DD V Input Reset and Interrupt High-level (Sinking) 300 na Current Input Communication Signals Voltage (except CAN) Output Communication Signals Voltage (except CAN) Input Communication Signals Current (except CAN) Output Communication Signals Current (except CAN) Low-level (Sourcing) 200 High-level +0.65*V DD +3.3 Low-level 0 +0.65*V DD High-level +2.4 +3.3 Low-level Output 0 +0.4 High-level (Sinking) 300 Low-level (Sourcing) 200 High-level (Sourcing) 2 Low-level (Sinking) 2 UART Symbol Rate 6 9.6 57.6 2000 kbd CAN Bus Dominant CAN High 2.45 V DD Output Voltage CAN Low 0.5 1.25 V CAN Bus Recessive CAN High 2.3 Output Voltage CAN Low 2.3 V CAN Bus Differential Input -6 +6 Voltage (CAN High Output (Dominant) +1.2 +2 +3 V CAN Low) Output (Recessive) -500 0 +12 mv CAN Bus Input Current High-level -30 Low-level -30 µa CAN Bus Impedance 7 120 Ω Temperature range -40 +85 C Table 3 GAUSS High Power UHF Radio Recommended Operating Conditions V V na ma 5 The radio is capable of transmitting at lower voltages, however, with low efficiency (Figure 8, Figure 9, Figure 10 and Figure 11). For higher efficiency at lower voltages please refer to GAUSS Low Power UHF Radio. 6 The typical symbol rate refers to the factory default. 7 As standard a single 120 Ω termination resistor is mounted, as seen on Figure 7 - see Option Sheet for other options. 10 of 17
Figure 7 GAUSS High power UHF Radio CAN Bus Termination 11 of 17
5. RF Characteristics TA = 25 C, unless otherwise noted. Parameter Min Typ Max Unit Frequency band Reception F RX 390 500 Transmission F 8 TX 400 450 MHz Frequency Resolution 15 Hz Data rate 0.3 250 9 kbps Output Power 10 V PA = 12 V, F TX = 400 MHz 40.1 dbm Efficiency V PA = 12 V, F TX = 415 MHz, P OUT,MAX 59 % Impedance 50 Ω Saturation +10 dbm 0.3 kbps -129 Sensitivity 1.2 kbps -122 9.6 kbps -119 dbm 50.0 kbps -109 Table 4 RF Characteristics 300 bps 1.2 kbps Conditions Min Typ Max Unit (adjacent channel) +6.25 khz 65 (alternate channel) +12.5 khz 66 ±1 MHz 86 db ±2 MHz 90 ±10 MHz 95 (adjacent channel) +12.5 khz 60 (alternate channel) ±25 khz 61 ±1 MHz 80 db ±2 MHz 85 ±10 MHz 91 Table 5 RF Characteristics - Blocking and Selectivity 8 For other frequencies contact GAUSS Srl for more information. 9 Not currently supported, it will be available in future firmware upgrades or upon user request. The current maximum data rate is 100 kbps. 10 Output power is controlled both by V PA and, dynamically, by a configuration parameter via software. 12 of 17
Efficiency [%] Efficiency [%] Efficiency [%] GAUSS High Power UHF Radio 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 RF Output Power [dbm] Figure 8 RF Efficiency versus RF Output Power @ 400 MHz PA Power Supply V PA 5 V 6 V 7 V 8 V 9 V 10 V 11 V 12 V 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 RF Output Power [dbm] Figure 9 RF Efficiency versus RF Output Power @ 415 MHz PA Power Supply V PA 5 V 6 V 7 V 8 V 9 V 10 V 11 V 12 V 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 RF Output Power [dbm] Figure 10 RF Efficiency versus RF Output Power @ 430 MHz PA Power Supply V PA 5 V 6 V 7 V 8 V 9 V 10 V 11 V 12 V 13 of 17
Max RF Power Output [dbm] Efficiency [%] GAUSS High Power UHF Radio 60% 55% 50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 RF Output Power [dbm] Figure 11 RF Efficiency versus RF Output Power @ 445 MHz PA Power Supply V PA 5 V 6 V 7 V 8 V 9 V 10 V 11 V 12 V 40 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 31 30 29 28 27 26 PA Power Supply V PA 5 V 7 V 9 V 10 V 25 410 415 420 425 430 435 440 445 450 Frequency [MHz] 12 V Figure 12 Maximum RF Power Output versus Frequency 14 of 17
6. Electrical Characteristics Considering V DD = 3.3 V, V PA = 12 V and TA = 25 C, unless otherwise noted. Parameter Condition Peak Unit Stand-by/Reception 67 Power Supply Current I DD ma Transmission 108 P OUT,MAX, F TX = 400 MHz 1605 P Power Amplifier Current I PA Transmission OUT,MAX, F TX = 415 MHz 1424 ma P OUT,MAX, F TX = 430 MHz 1401 P OUT,MAX, F TX = 445 MHz 1493 Table 6 GAUSS High Power UHF Radio Electrical Characteristics 15 of 17
7. Physical Characteristics and Drawings Table 7 presents the physical characteristics, whereas Figure 13, Figure 14, Figure 15, Figure 16, Figure 17, Figure 18 and Figure 19 present the detailed dimensions, of the High Power UHF Radio with the SMA connector. Measure Mass including all connectors External size including all connectors (SMA) Value 37 g 75 x 31.5 x 12.50 mm Table 7 GAUSS High Power UHF Radio Physical Characteristics All dimensions are in mm. Figure 13 High Power UHF Radio Outer Dimensions Figure 15 High Power UHF Radio Mounting Details Figure 14 High Power UHF Radio Connectors and Features Top View Figure 16 High Power UHF Radio Connector and Features Bottom View 16 of 17
Figure 17 High Power UHF Radio Top Detail B (P2 Connector) Figure 18 High Power UHF Radio Bottom Detail C (P2 Connector) Figure 19 High Power UHF Radio Connectors and Features Section D-D 17 of 17